Poniception: As It Seems
by RomanVulcan83
Summary: Six human girls wake up in three plain houses with no idea how they got there. Guided by a mysterious being, they journey through the surrounding woods to reclaim their missing memories. But their collective amnesia is the least of their problems, considering how it all started...and who's responsible. Rated K Plus...for now.
1. Amnesia

A/N: First things first: I do not own the MLP franchise. Hasbro owns the toys, and Lauren Faust came up with the show. And I happen to be neither of them.

I hope you like this first chapter of my new story; coming up with this story actually brought me back into writing after a four-year lull. Be ready to learn some names as you read, but know this: there are no OCs in this chapter. It may look like they are, but it'll make sense if you think about it...

Update on 9/22/13: Edited for content and order and reuploaded.

All right, enough of that! Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 1: Amnesia

She woke up, feeling very strange with no idea why. She wasn't in pain; in fact, she felt just fine, other than this weird foggy feeling in her head. But something just didn't feel right.

At first, she simply took a quick look at the room with her half-closed, sleepy eyes. And she may have drifted back to sleep, had she not realized what she saw…

_Wait…what in the-?!_ she thought, fully opening her eyes.

She didn't recognize the room at all. At the very least, this dimly lit room sure wasn't the one she had fallen asleep in.

_Wha—? Wh-Where am I?! How'd I get here?!_

The shock woke her up enough to sit bolt upright. She could feel her heart beating faster in her chest with every passing second.

_What's going on here?! Was I…kidnapped? Why would someone kidnap me?_

That question only brought forward the last one she wanted to ask:

_Wait…who am I?_

_I-I—I don't even know who I am?!_

That thought alone almost sent her into a panic. But before that could happen…

_Wait, calm down,_ she told herself, almost like she had practiced this before. _Panicking is the last thing you wanna do right now._

She swung her feet off the left side of the bed, pulling her legs from under the covers and letting them dangle. She took three deep breaths.

_There._ _That's better,_ she though after the third._ Now, concentrate. You've gotta remember something!_

She tilted her head forward and brought her left hand up to her face, four fingers to her forehead. It felt a little strange for some reason, but she pushed that thought aside for now.

_Just…try your name. Out loud. Plain and simple._

She took another deep breath.

"My name is…" she said in a low voice.

Suddenly, something seemed to come out the fog in her head.

"…is…L…Lu…"

Her eyes sprang open as it came to her.

"Lucy," she said. "Lucy Candeo."

She wasn't sure it was right, but it would have to do for now.

Even in the dim lighting, Lucy could still see. Next to her bed was a bedside table and, on top of it, a lamp.

_Good. Time to shed a little light on the situation._

She reached over and turned on the lamp.

The room certainly wasn't any more familiar, but it wasn't so threatening now. It was plain with white walls. A quick look to the other side of her purple blanketed bed revealed a tall (and very full) bookshelf.

_Looks like I'm quite a reader._

There was another bed, with pink blankets, next to hers, neatly made. Under it appeared to be streamers, gag items, and unused party balloons.

_So I have a roommate. Someone who likes parties, it seems…_

Just past the pink bed was a dresser with a mirror, and past that were two writing desks facing opposite directions. There were also two doors, one ajar and the other wide open.

_So I'm not as trapped as I thought, _Lucy mused. _That's a good sign…_

She then looked down at herself, expecting to see pajamas. Instead, she found herself dressed in a white short-sleeve polo, a purple sweater vest, a grey skirt, and two long white socks. None of which appeared wrinkled.

_Okay, this is getting weird…_

Something silvery on her chest caught her eye. It seemed to be hanging from her neck.

_Hey, what's—oh, a locket! Maybe it'll help me remember!_

She picked up the silver oval locket and opened it. Inside were two pictures, both of which featured a black-haired girl with light brown highlights in her hair and clothing quite similar to Lucy's.

_I think that's me…I'll have to check. But who are all these other people?_

The first was a family portrait with two parents, the girl in question, and a young man who looked older than her. The second showed the girl with a young boy. The boy had platinum blonde hair with green tips, and he was wearing a purple hoodie, similar to the color of the girl's sweater vest.

_I'll think about that later. Right now, I'd better get my bearings._

She stood up and tried to walk. She almost stumbled onto the pink bed but found her balance before that happened.

_Why does it feel so odd to be walking on two feet? Maybe I'm just tired…_

She looked down and spotted a pair of black slip-on shoes by her feet. She tried them on, and they fit perfectly. Then she walked to the foot of her bed and noticed a window in front of her.

Looking outside, she could see a spooky-looking forest of darkly colored trees. It looked like it surrounded the house she was in. The dark, overcast weather didn't help the feeling the forest gave. It made her swallow hard.

_Looks like a good day to stay inside. _

She looked back at her bed. Seeing how untidy it was, she went back to make it, like her roommate had apparently done. Just because she didn't know how she got to there didn't mean could be untidy.

Besides, it also gave her a chance to think.

_Okay, I've got quite a bit to do, it seems. I've gotta meet my roommate, see if she knows anything, figure out what happened, somehow find our way back…_

She finished making the bed, starting to feel confused by her expanding list.

_Sheesh, it's too much to remember. I gotta make a checklist or something!_

She looked over at the writing desks. One of them, now that she looked, has a pad and a pen on it.

_Aha, just what I needed_.

She walked around the pink bed and almost passed the dresser. Then she remembered the locket.

_Good thing there's a mirror here. Besides, I think I've got bedhead…_

She walked up to the dresser and looked into the mirror. A black-haired girl with light brown skin and dark brown eyes stared back at her from behind the glass. She glanced at the highlights near the front.

_Yep, it's my locket all right. And my hair's a mess. Nothing a brush can't fix._

She looked down and saw two brushes, one pink and one purple. Strands of strawberry blonde hair decorated the pink brush.

_Guess the purple one's mine._

While she was brushing, her eyes were pulled to the bottom of her ears. She stopped.

_Wha—earrings? Didn't see them that well in the pictures._

She looked more closely at said jewelry. Both were small and circular, and they had a lot of stars, two stacked in the middle and six around them. The design seemed strangely familiar…

_Wait, I'm getting distracted. I'd better make that checklist._

As soon as she was done with her hair, Lucy left the dresser and came to the desk. She picked up the lined pad, which sat next to a framed photograph whose back was to her, and looked at it. It looked brand new with no marks or dents on the surface. She couldn't help but smile.

_How many checklists could I make with this?_ she thought, flipping through the pages. _I'd probably need a checklist of checklists then—_

_Wait, what the—?!_

One page had looked different from the others. Looking back through the pad, she quickly found this page and removed it. It wasn't connected to the pad or even lined! It looked as if someone had just stuck it into the pad.

On the page was written one beautifully scripted word. The word, however, made no sense to Lucy.

"_Rarity"? What's this about a "rarity"? And why is it capitalized?_

She thought about it for a moment but soon had to give up.

_But something tells me it's important; I'd better hold on to it. Good thing my skirt has a pocket._

With that, Lucy pocketed the paper and started to write the checklist. Admittedly, it did help her feel better. Then she looked at the framed photograph. She gasped in surprise.

_Hey, that's me! What am I doing there? And who are those five other girls around me? My friends or something?_

_Just when I thought things couldn't get any stranger…_

She picked it up to look at it. Sure enough, all five girls around her looked strangely familiar.

_Maybe I should take it with me, too. I hope it helps me remember something…_

She took a deep breath to calm herself down…and caught a scent. She sniffed the air intently.

_Smells like someone's baking…_

As her mouth watered, her stomach growled. She hadn't realized how hungry she was.

_I think I could use a little breakfast._

With that, she headed to the door that was ajar. She opened it fully and stepped out into the hallway.

* * *

_Good, they're all up now,_ she thought, a small bit of hope tinging her worry. _I'm glad those three houses lasted this long…_

* * *

In a second house, both occupants were already up, in front of a similarly positioned dresser and mirror. One of them, wearing a sweater and jeans, was seated; the other stood behind her, working on the former's hair.

"There. How does that look, Ms. Papilio?" asked the standing girl, stepping back.

The seated girl looked at her reflection in the mirror. She glanced at her yellow V-neck, the three butterflies sewn on the left side, and her locket. She then looked up at her light brown hair and, after a moment, smiled timidly.

"I love it," She answered. "Thanks for doing my hair, Nessa. And, please, just call me Serena." She blushed with embarrassment. "I-If you want to, that is."

"It's all right, Serena, darling. And you're very welcome."

Serena stood up and looked at her roommate, Vanessa Fairchild, or Nessa, as Serena called her. She was a pale and somewhat short girl with blue eyes and dark brown hair a little longer that Serena's, styled similarly except for curlier ends. She wore a fashionable white frilly-collared shirt over her khaki skirt. As for jewelery, she wore a locket, like Serena's, and a blue diamond bracelet.

"Where'd you learn to do hair like that?" Serena asked quietly.

"Well…" Nessa looked up and around, thinking. "I honestly don't know, darling. My mind's been a bit of a blank since I woke up. I just remember that I'm good with anything fashion-related."

"Hmm…wonder what I'm good at…"

A tapping at the window made them both jump and look. A pigeon was sitting on the outside, pecking at the glass.

"Oh, my!" said Nessa in shock. "What's this all about?"

"I think he wants to come in." Serena paused. "Could…could you…please let him in, Nessa? I-I'll get him some food."

Although a little confused by Serena's request, Nessa agreed after a moment and walked to the window.

Serena walked to her bed, the one with yellow blankets as opposed to Nessa's white ones, and looked underneath. There, she found a large container of birdseed and scooped up a handful.

As Nessa neared the window, she got a better look at the pigeon. On its back was a canister, the kind messages were put in.

"My word, it's a carrier pigeon!" she exclaimed, opening the window slowly.

Serena looked back at the window in surprise. Then she walked towards it and held out her hands to the pigeon.

"C'mon, little guy," she cooed. "I'm not gonna hurt you."

The pigeon stepped up onto her right hand and cooed softly before pecking at the seeds.

"Long flight, boy?"

The pigeon paused and cooed again. Serena smiled and blushed slightly.

"Oh, you're a girl? I'm sorry."

The pigeon pecked at the seed and cooed again. It sounded muffled.

"Don't talk with your beak full; you might choke," said Serena worriedly.

It cooed again, more clearly this time.

"Oh, it's for me? Who's it from?"

Another coo.

"You can't say who, but I can trust her?"

Another coo.

"All right. Thanks for the message. I'll have to hold onto you to get it, though."

With that, she gently picked it up around its back with her left hand. Then she poured the seed in her right hand on the outside of the window. With her right hand now free, she opened the canister and took out the paper inside. After resealing the canister, she placed the pigeon on the windowsill.

"Stay safe out there," she told it, stroking its feathers.

It ate a little more seed and looked back at Serena. Then it cooed at her and flew away.

Serena closed the window and looked back at Nessa, who looked completely lost.

"Wha—what just happened here?" Nessa managed to stammer out.

Serena looked at her, worried and confused.

"I-I mean, was it really talking to you?"

Serena nodded.

"Maybe that's my special talent…" she mused. "I just felt some sort of…connection with her…"

Nessa took a moment to let this sink in.

"So what does it say? Your message," she asked, changing the subject.

"Oh! I almost forgot about it." Serena blushed again. "Sorry…"

"No, no, don't worry about it. Let's see what it says."

Serena unrolled the paper, which was folded in half. When she opened it, she looked worried again.

"Um…I don't get what this means…"

Nessa walked behind her to see the paper. The handwriting was beautiful, but it would have been better if the two words made sense.

"Rainbow…Dash? What's _that_ supposed to mean?" she asked.

Serena looked at her and shrugged.

"I dunno, but it sounds so...familiar…"

* * *

_And it seems they still have their abilities,_ she thought as she felt the pigeon flying back to her.

She looked around the forest clearing she was standing in. Beyond the surrounding trees was a transparent yellow dome surrounding the area. She tried not to look at it, as it scared her.

_And I don't want to give _him_ any more power than he's getting already._

* * *

In a third house, another girl was already up as well. Like the others, she had been confused upon waking up with no clue where she was or even who she was. She did remember her name, though: Iris Allegri.

_I don't know what mom and dad were thinking,_ she complained when she remembered. _I mean, Iris? That's a flower! Did they think was I gonna be a girly girl?_

Looking around the room, she had found a bookshelf full of what looked like adventure books, her favorite genre, if she remembered correctly.

Like Lucy, it seemed she had a roommate. There was second bed with orange blankets, as opposed to Iris's sky-blue ones. There was a picture above it of a horse on a hill and, next to the picture, a hook for a hat or something…

She walked to the dresser and saw herself in the mirror. Her eyes were hazel. Her hair was a very light platinum blond, not that long, and a little messy. She wore a sky-blue tracksuit with white stripes down the sleeves and legs. Her jacket was partly unzipped, revealing a white tank top underneath, complete with picture of a cloud with a tri-colored lightning bolt.

_Well, THAT looks familiar! Maybe it's my symbol or somethin'…_

She also noticed the locket around her neck but decided not to bother with it quite yet.

She then looked down at the dresser and spotted an envelope. An envelope with her name on it. Curiously, she picked it up and opened it. There were two pieces of paper inside. She looked at the larger one first, placing the smaller one back in the envelope for the time being.

Iris was pretty sure the letter had been written by a child, judging by the style. She was also sure the writer was excited while writing it. It also mentioned her doing well in some competition…

_So I _am_ a famous athlete!_ she thought excitedly. _Now just what sport am I in…?_

She got to the end of the letter and looked at the signature:

"Your sister-in-spirit,  
Jeanie 'Finch' Louis"

She reread the signature and thought for a second.

_Finch? Boy, she sounds familiar._

She tried her best to remember the girl but to no avail.

_Huh. Maybe my locket has something…_

She put the letter down on the dresser with the envelope. She picked it up and opened it a little clumsily, like she wasn't used to having fingers.

The picture on the right showed her with a brown-haired girl, dressed in an orange T-shirt and jeans, no more than twelve. They were posing next to a scooter, most likely the younger girl's, considering the side.

_Oh, that's Finch! I kinda remember her now…so why didn't I before?_

After pondering this for a moment, she looked at the other picture. She was in it as well, only with a young man with black hair instead of Finch. He was wearing some sort of body suit with a pair of goggles.

_Okay, seriously, what do we do? I mean, he looks like he's about to go flying or something!_

After a moment, she simply shrugged and closed the locket. She took a breath and then remembered.

_Oh, yeah, what was that other piece'a paper?_

She picked up the envelope and fished out the smaller paper. There was only one word written on it in a beautiful script that Finch could not have written.

_What in the—what the heck does _this_ mean? What sorta word is "Fluttershy"?_

But even as she thought about it, the seemingly nonsense word sounded familiar.

_Ah, what the hey, I'll hold onto it. It's just a piece a' paper, after all…_

* * *

_Yes!_ _They've found all the keys._

She looked over at a small chest in the middle of the clearing. It had no keyhole but six slits on top, each of which was surrounded by a color.

_I just hope they realize whose is whose._

* * *

What would you care for, darling?" Vanessa asked, looking in their fridge.

She turned around to face her roommate, who was standing behind the counter.

"Eggs sound good?"

Serena thought for a second before answering.

"Yes, please," she whispered.

Nessa nodded and looked through the fridge again.

"Oh, perfect, parsley! Great for a garnish!"

She took out both ingredients, as well as some butter, and put them on the counter. She then looked at Serena. For some reason, Serena was wincing.

"Something wrong, darling?"

"Do…do you need any help? I mean, you've done my hair, and I don't wanna make you do all the—"

"It's all right, darling. I don't mind at all. You can set the table if you want, though."

Serena nodded and approached the backwards-L-shaped counter, which separated the small kitchen from the apparent dining area.

"Don't worry. I washed my hands."

Nessa smiled and nodded. She then opened a drawer, the one closest to the bend, and looked inside. She quickly closed it and opened the one to its left.

"Ah, here we are!"

She took out two forks and table knives. She handed them handle first to Serena, who still looked nervous.

_Well, I did overreact a little to that one…_pen…

She bristled at the thought of that single writing utensil. She took a deep breath to calm herself down.

_But why did I get so angry? It makes less sense than her with the pigeon…_

As she thought about this, she looked in an upper cabinet and found some plates. She took out two and placed them by the stove. She looked for a second at the frying pan, which had been there when they came in.

"So, how'd you like your eggs?" she asked without looking up.

Serena didn't answer. Nessa looked over to see her roommate hunched over the table, looking at something.

"Serena?"

Said girl gasped and snapped upright. She looked at Nessa with wide, worried eyes.

"I-I-I'm sorry...I wasn't listening…"

"It's all right, darling. What were you looking at?"

Nessa paused to look at what had caught Serena's attention. Serena looked back herself and picked up the object, a piece of paper.

"I-is this yours?"

Serena turned the written side towards Nessa so the latter could read it. Nessa's eyes grew as wide as Serena's.

"Yes…yes, it is!" Nessa looked at Serena and smiled. "I found that in the dresser before you got up!"

Serena walked to the counter and handed it to her. Both looked at it.

"But what does it mean?" Serena asked

"I'm afraid I haven't the slightest clue," Nessa answered. "I mean, 'Twilight Sparkle'? Almost sounds like a book, and not a good one, at that!"

"Maybe…it's someone's name?"

There was an awkward pause for a moment.

"Maybe…we should discuss it over breakfast…" Nessa suggested.

"If that's okay with you…"

Nessa nodded. She opened the egg carton and took out two.

"Um…may I please just have one? If it's not too much trouble; I'm just not feeling that hungry…" Serena sounded almost embarrassed.

"Certainly, it's no trouble at all!"

Nessa put one back and brought the other one, as well as the butter, to the stove. She turned on the burner under the pan. As she continued to make breakfast, she started thinking.

_Who could have made these odd slips of paper? The handwriting is just elegant, BEAUTIFUL! And I, for one, wouldn't waste such elegance on writing nonsense…_

She took out another table knife. With it, she cut a pad of butter and dropped it into the pan. She also continued to think.

_Ergo, there's got to be a good reason for our getting these beautifully written papers. That just leaves the question: what could that reason be…?_

* * *

She closed her eyes and dug her left front hoof into the ground.

_The houses are still holding. But how long do they have…?_

She wasn't sure she'd like the estimate she'd have to make…

* * *

As Lucy walked down the hall, she could hear her roommate.

"Laa la-la laa-laaaa, laa la-la laa-laaaa…"

_What's that earworm-y tune she's singing? Sounds like the lyrics would be "my little…something…"_

She rounded the corner. There was her roommate, a curly-haired strawberry blond girl wearing a frilly pink tank top and jean shorts decorated on the front left with three balloons. It was pretty clear she had been using the kitchen, as hinted by about four dozen muffins sitting on cooling racks on the counter.

Lucy looked at the framed picture and spotted this her.

_Hmm…Looks like we know each other…_

She looked back at the muffins. Her stomach growled again.

_Still, I think I'd better ask before having one…_

Lucy approached the front counter. Her roommate, who was checking a timer, didn't seem to notice Lucy.

"Almost done…" her roommate said happily.

"Um…" Lucy's voice was a little shaky. "Hello?"

The other girl jumped and turned to look at Lucy with a loud, long gasp before hiding behind the counter. Lucy took a step back, surprised at the reaction.

_Well, that was…interesting…_

After a second, the other girl peeked up over the muffins. She then popped up with a big smile on her face.

"Oh! You're my roommate!" she said excitedly.

"Uh, yeah, I think so…" Lucy answered nervously.

The other girl skipped around the counter and extended her hand. Lucy took it, and they shook.

"Hi, there, roommate! My name's Rosalina Diane Baker, but you can call me Rosie."

"Um, thanks, Rosie. I'm Lucy. Lucy Candeo."

"Can-day-o?"

Lucy nodded.

"Okalee-dokalee! Hey, you wanna have breakfast, Lucy? Help yourself! Choose a muffin, any muffin!"

"All right. Thank you, Rosie."

Rosie smiled at her and skipped back to the oven. Lucy surveyed the muffins and spotted four that were set aside from the others. They seemed to have a slightly redder color than the rest.

_Might as well try one…_

She picked one up and took a bite. It was quite good, although something seemed a little off about it…

"Oh, wait!" called Rosie, her back towards Lucy. "See the ones I put aside, the redder ones? Don't try those."

"Why not?" Lucy asked, her mouth full of muffin. "They're delicious!"

Rosie gasped and turned around, looking quite worried. Lucy swallowed.

"Um, just 'cause I, uh…put some hot sauce in 'em…"

Lucy's eyebrows went up.

"Hot sauce?"

She only had a few seconds before it hit. She only had time to mumble "Oh, Ce—" before the burning took over her mouth, causing her to gasp.

"Don't worry, Lucy! I'll save you!" Rosie called out.

She grabbed a glass from an open cabinet and ran to the fridge. She then filled it with milk and ran it over to Lucy. Lucy snatched the milk in a panic and took a big mouthful, not caring that a little was dripping down her face. She relaxed as it cooled the burning.

"Now don't swallow it!" Rosie told her as Lucy lowered the glass. "That'll only make it worse."

Lucy walked over to the sink and spat out the contaminated milk. She took a few breaths to calm down before rinsing her mouth with milk again. Then she looked over at Rosie, very much annoyed.

"How much hot sauce did you _put_ in those muffins?!"

"Two bottles," Rosie answered with a grin.

Lucy's eyes widened.

"Wha—_two bottles a muffin?!_"

"No, silly! Two for all four!"

"Th-that's still half a bottle for one! Why would you do that, anyway?"

"'Cause I like 'em that way!" Rosie giggled.

_Okay,_ thought Lucy, watching Rosie walk up to her._ My roommate is officially nuts._

"'Scuse me," said Rosie.

Lucy moved aside to let her roommate wash her hands. That's when she noticed something.

_I'm taller than her. Half a head, at least. But why does that feel odd?_

Rosie dried her hands on a hanging towel and walked over to the cooling muffins.

"Let's see," she mumbled. "Where did I—Aha!"

She picked up a muffin and turned to Lucy.

"You'll like this one MUCH better! It's a blueberry muffin, found the berries in the freezer."

She gave it to Lucy, who walked to the other side of the counter. Rosie watched Lucy expectantly.

_I'd better taste this first,_ Lucy thought._ I'd rather not go through _that_ again…_

She took a nibble off the top, noting the subtle arrangement of the blueberries.

_An "F"? Does that stand for something?_

She waited for the burning to start, but, this time, it didn't come. Instead, she just got the sweet flavor of the baked good.

"I love it," she told Rosie with a smile.

Rosie grinned and giggled, then went right back to watching Lucy.

_Wonder what she's waiting for…_

After a moment, she took a big bite out of the side…and made a startled sound as her teeth hit something thin and papery.

_What in heaven's—?!_

She pulled off the bits of muffin surrounding the strange object and looked. Sure enough, it was a folded piece of paper.

"Um, Rosie?" Lucy turned her muffin so her roommate could see the paper. "What's this?"

Rosie bounced for joy when she saw it.

"Yay! I was right! That's my fortune muffin!"

"Fortune muffin?"

"Yep yep! Just like a fortune cookie, 'cept it's a muffin!"

Lucy blinked at her roommate. She then looked at the "fortune" inside the muffin and pulled it out. It was stained by the muffin and dented from her biting it. She unfolded it.

Like the paper she found back in her room, it had a single word on it. This word was also beautifully written, but it still didn't make any sense…

"Applejack? What's the heck's an Applejack?"

"I dunno," replied Rosie. "Some kinda breakfast cereal?"

Lucy sighed and rolled her eyes. She handed Rosie the stained paper.

"You'd better hold on to it, Rosie. I've got one already."

She pulled out her paper, the one with "Rarity" written on it, to show it to her roommate.

"Okie dokie lokie!" Rosie looked at Lucy's paper. "Hey, look! The writing's the same!"

Lucy looked from one to the other. Her eyes became wide.

"You're right! They must've come from the same person…"

Her words trailed off as she drifted into thought.

_This is getting weirder by the minute. They make no sense, and yet..._

_Ugh! Why does it feel like they're so important?_

* * *

_That's not a lot of time,_ she realized. _I need to cast that spell soon…_

She hesitated, though. She didn't want to send them on this journey; she knew it'd be frightening and painful for them…

* * *

Iris headed down the hallway, sniffing. She could catch the smell of cooked apples and fried pastry.

_Guess my roommate's making breakfast…_

Her mouth watered as she walked forward enough to see a table set for two with a basket of apples in the middle. She rounded the corner to see the kitchen.

Working at the stove was a ruddy cowgirl, as her hat and boots indicated, with blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail. She was wearing a knotted orange and yellow plaid button-up with a full-length white undershirt and jeans. Her sleeves were rolled up past her elbows.

On the stove was a pot of oil with a strainer in it. The cowgirl picked up the strainer, revealing three golden-brown pastries, and turned off the stove. She brought them over to the front counter, where there was a cooling rack with newspaper underneath, next to a platter piled with cool ones.

This gave Iris a good look at her face, namely her freckled cheeks and green eyes. Iris also noticed the three apples on the left side of the cowgirl's shirt. The cowgirl even had a locket quite similar to her one.

The cowgirl looked up at Iris as she flipped the pastries onto the rack.

"Oh!"

The cowgirl took a step backwards, startling Iris as Iris has startled her.

"G'mornin', miss!" the cowgirl exclaimed.

"Uh, morning," said Iris, smiling awkwardly.

The cowgirl put down the strainer and smiled back.

"Ah was wond'rin' when you were gettin' up. And Ah bet'cher hungreh."

"Heh. You got that right," Iris chuckled, her stomach growling.

"Well, help yerself t'some fritters 'n' apples. Th'apples're realleh fresh; got 'em rahght outta th'backyard."

This time, Iris took a step backwards.

"Wha—we got apple trees…in the backyard?!"

"Eeyup. Justa few, but they were jus' LOADED. One tree had a whole peck!"

Iris wasn't sure what a peck was, but it sure sounded like a lot.

"Oh, how rude'a me! Ah didn't intraduce mahself!"

With that, she tipped her hat.

"How d'ya do, pardner? Name's Ava Johnson. Short fer Avalon, jus' so y'know."

"I'm Iris. Iris Allegri."

"Ahris, huh? That's a purdy name."

Iris flushed in embarrassment.

"Uh…thanks…?" She forced a smile.

She then looked at the cooling racks with the steaming fritters. There were about three and a half dozen sitting there, several of which were still steaming. She picked up one of the cooler ones and took a bite. Her eyes grew wide in surprise.

"Hey…it's good!"

Ava chuckled.

"Y'say that lahke y'weren't expectin' much. Lemmeh tell ya, Ah may be a farm gal, but that doesn't mean Ah ain't a good cook!"

She tilted her head and smiled sheepishly.

"Though mah first trah this mornin' didn't realleh go so well…"

"Why's 'at?" asked Iris, her mouth full of fritter.

"Ah tried makin' muffins, but Ah was a purdy sleepy, an' mah head was a li'l foggy…good gravy, they were bad! 'Less ya lahke tater-chip muffins!"

Caught off guard, Iris snorted.

"Don't do that!" she laughed. "Now I've got fritter up my nose!"

Ava laughed with her for a moment. After they both quieted down, Iris glanced at the newspaper under the cooling racks.

"That's not today's, is it?"

Ava sighed and looked at her guiltily.

"'Fraid so, only newspapah we had." She perked up a little. "But jus' the Classifahds; purdy big today. Resta it's on th'table."

"O…kay…"

Iris raised an eyebrow uncertainly as she picked up another fritter. She walked over to the table, and sure enough, in front of the seat on the right was a pile of newspaper. She put her fritters on the plate and looked through the pile. She quickly realized that Ava was telling the truth. Only the Classified section was missing in the pile.

_But what happened to the older ones? And how'd we even get _this_ one? Aren't we in the middle of nowhere?_

Ava came over to pick up her plate, pausing only to look at something behind the basket of apples in the middle.

Iris looked through the paper as she ate her fritters. She didn't find much, except for one article.

"Wha—? 'Magician Still Missing'?"

"Wha'zat?"

Ava walked over, four fritters piled on her plate. Iris turned the paper to show her and the picture of a girl about their age, wearing a dress, cape, and pointed hat.

"Says four days ago, some magician disappeared—" Iris began.

"Wait, ain't that a trick?"

"She wasn't performing, Ava," grumbled Iris. "In fact, she vanished the night before a big show! Nopo—I-I mean, no_body_ knows where she is…"

Ava squinted at the picture.

"Strange…Ah feel lahke I know 'er…h, what was 'er name ag'in?"

"Let's see…"

Iris looked at the article again and spotted the name.

"Beatrix…Lulamoon…Hmm, now that you mention it…"

Iris closed her eyes and concentrated on this Beatrix Lulamoon. But the harder she tried to remember, the harder it was to remember.

"Sorry," she said after a moment. "I've got nothing."

"Me neither." Ava sighs. "Makes 'bout as much sense as tha' li'l piece'a papeh Ah found…"

Iris's eyebrows went up.

"Little paper?"

"Here, Ah'll show ya."

Ava walked to her place and put down her plate. She pulled out a mud-stained piece of paper from behind the apples. She showed it to Iris, whose eyes widened.

_That handwriting…_

She reached into her pocket and pulled out her paper. Her eyes opened even wider.

"Ava…" She turned it around to show her roommate.

"Oh, mah…" Ava's eyes grew as wide as Iris's.

Ava looked at her paper one more time to be sure.

"It's the same!"

"So the same person writing 'em…" Iris mused. "But what do they mean? I mean, 'Fluttershy' isn't a real word, is it?"

Ava looked at hers before answering.

"Maybeh…it's a name. Ah mean, maine looks lahke a name, but who'd wanna be called 'Pinkie Pah'?"

Iris closed her eyes and brought her left hand to her chin to think.

_Fluttershy, Beatrix Lulamoon, and Pinkie Pie. Three rather odd names of people I've haven't met…_

_So why do they sound so freakin' familiar?!_

* * *

A scream from beneath the ground startled her. It also made her remember:

_I have to do this. I'm—no, _we're_ out of options. And out of time…_

She closed her eyes and concentrated on the spell she had to cast. It was relatively simple to cast, but it took a good bit of concentration to maintain. And, right now, it would take all her willpower to concentrate enough…

* * *

A/N: So what do _you_ think is happening? Please let me know in your reviews. Also, if you have any questions, or notice that I've done something wrong, please note it in your review and please be polite about it. Flame never helped anyone.

Be warned: I have a sense of humor. I'm not giving out spoilers, so you might get a goofy answer to your question...

Thanks for reading!

Vivas diu fortunesque. \V/


	2. Single Steps

A/N: Not enough action in the last chapter? Well, I hope this will fix the issue! (Said in a goofy voice)

Something else to note: starting in this chapter, I'll be giving out some codes you can plug into a "game" on DeviantArt known as Pony Creator. You can find the address in my profile, or you can Google it, if you wish. One such code will be in the bottom A/N.

All right, enough chitchat! Let's get it on!

* * *

Chapter 2: Single Steps

Having finished their respective breakfasts, all the girls agreed to show their lockets to their roommates. They all had two pictures, and the pictures raised several questions…

* * *

In the first house, Lucy had elected to go first.

Rosie thought her little brother, Drake, was really cute, though she asked why the tips of his hair were green.

"I have no idea," Lucy answered.

Rosie also declared her liking of Lucy's older brother, Edward, asking if he had a team or something. Lucy had no idea what she meant.

_And it doesn't sound like anything good…_

In Rosie's locket, one picture was similar to Lucy's family portrait. In it, a smiling older couple—bakers, most likely—were holding a pair of babies, a brown-haired boy and a redheaded girl. Between them stood Rosie, sporting a broad grin. Lucy couldn't help but smile herself. She then asked if they were Rosie's family.

"I dunno…" Rosie answered. "I mean, it feels like I am, but it feels like I'm not…weird, huh?"

The other picture surprised Lucy. It was an alligator with purple eyes. As one would expect, she asked Rosie about it as well.

"My pet baby alligator!" Rosie squealed with joy. "Don't think he's teething yet, so he's safe…"

_Well, I certainly hope so…_Lucy thought, glancing at the uncomfortably.

xXxXx

In the second house, Nessa showed Serena her locket.

Her first picture was a family portrait. From it, she could tell her mother was quite fashionable, while her father…not so much. In front of them were Nessa and her little sister, Pamela, who looked quite similar to Nessa, except for lighter and shorter hair. The other picture was just a close-up of Pammie.

"Aww, she looks like such a sweetie," she said, staring doe-eyed at the latter.

As for Serena, one of her pictures confirmed her love of animals. In it, she was surrounded by all kinds of animals from squirrels to even bears. She was holding a small white rabbit, which had a rather odd expression on its face…

_How can a rabbit look disgruntled?_ Nessa wondered.

Then she looked at the other one and gasped.

"Oh, my WORD! Who is _that_?!"

Serena looked the picture. She was in that one as well, only, instead of the animals, she was with an older-looking man, dressed in the gaudiest outfit imaginable. None of the colors matched, even remotely. He was giving her bunny ears as he grinned.

Serena blushed.

"I…I…I don't remember…I think it was something like Chaos or Trouble…"

_I wouldn't be surprised,_ thought Nessa with a small chuckle. _He looks like a _lord_ of chaos…_

* * *

In the third house, Iris was showing her pictures to Ava.

Naturally, Ava asked what sport Iris and the uniformed man played.

"That's what _I'd_ like to know!" Iris replied.

When she saw the other picture, Ava gasped.

"A-Ah think Ah know that Finch girl! Ah think she's friends with mah sister!"

"Sister?"

"Here, lemmeh show yeh."

With that, Ava opened her locket and held it up for Iris to see.

On the left was a picture of an elderly woman. For some reason, it reminded Iris of getting smacked by a purse, though she couldn't say how exactly.

"Her?" said Ava when Iris asked. "She's mah Granny. Quahte a fahsty woman. Or so Ah remembah…"

The other picture had Ava in it along with two others. One was a tall man in a red shirt and jeans with a straw-colored mullet. He was holding up a redheaded girl in a yellow T-shirt and overalls who looked around Finch's age. She somehow seemed familiar, especially with the red ribbon in her hair…

"He your dad?" Iris asked.

"Nnope. Tha's mah brother, Maxwell. We jus' call 'im Mac, tho'."

"And that's your little sister he's holding?"

"Eeyup, that's Lily. Always trahin' t'fahnd what she's good at, but she still has a ways t'go…"

"Yeah…" Iris chuckled, looking at her own locket, "…just like Finch…"

* * *

These conversations may have continued like this, had it not been for some unexpected visitors…

* * *

Lucy looked over at the remaining muffins on the counter, including the last dozen which Rosie had been baking when they had met. Lucy had eaten four muffins, excluding the bit of the first one she had tried. All of the other hot sauce muffins were gone as well.

_How could she even eat those without even breaking a sweat?_ Lucy wondered._ Is she just that crazy?_

Suddenly, she heard Rosie gasp. She looked over to her roommate, who was staring past her.

"Um, Lucy…" Rosie pointed where she was looking. "What's that?"

Lucy turned around to see for herself. Her eyes widened.

There was a floating white ball made of light. It slowly bobbed in the air.

"I dunno…" Lucy answered her. "I've never—"

"Greetings, young ones," said a gentle but strong female voice.

Both girls jumped and yelped at the sound.

"Y-y-you…" Lucy stammered at the white ball. "You can talk!"

"I'm sorry if I startled you," it said. "What are your names, young ones?"

Rosie stood up walked over next to Lucy, who was shaking a little bit.

"M-My name's Lucy." There was a slight quiver in her voice.

"Hiya…I'm Rosie, short for Rosalina." She sounded half-excited, half-nervous.

"Thank you, Lucy, Rosie," the voice continued. "But now, I need you both to listen, and listen well. You're both in grave danger."

"W-We're listening," replied Lucy as Rosie nodded.

The voice paused for a second.

"The house you're in right now won't remain safe for long. I'd estimate you have about ten minutes to get ready and leave."

"Leave? And go where?" Lucy sounded worried.

"Outside, there's a path leading into the forest. You need to follow that path. It's the safest way through the forest. But be on guard, as it isn't completely safe."

Lucy and Rosie looked at each other uncomfortably and then back at the ball.

"How d'ya know?" Rosie asked. "Didja put us here?"

"I can't say right now, Rosie. But I will later, once you reach me."

"Reach you? But aren't you—?" Lucy started to ask.

"No, I'm somewhere else entirely," the voice calmly informed her. "This orb of light is simply a tool with which I can communicate with you."

Again, the voice paused for a second.

"I'm sorry, but I must leave you soon. There are four others like you, and I need to warn them before it's too late. There's a backpack in your bedroom, under your bed, Lucy. Pack what you need and get out before it's too late."

"Gotcha," Lucy answered.

"This orb will follow you as you make your journey in case I need to communicate with you again. I'm sorry I can't help you further. Good luck, young ones. I have faith in you both."

With that, the ball fell silent. The girls looked at each other again.

_Who _was_ that?_ Lucy thought worriedly, looking back at the ball. _The voice sounded familiar, so I might know this person. And I feel like we can trust her…_

But something didn't make sense.

_If I know and trust this person, then why does she scare me?_

* * *

"Now what do you make of that?" Nessa stared at the floating white ball in front of her and Serena.

"Uh…I dunno…" Serena peeked out from behind Nessa. "But something tells me we should listen to it…"

"Yes, me, too." Nessa turned around to look at her roommate. "Let's go find that backpack."

Serena nodded nervously. Both of them quickly walked back to the bedroom. Nessa quickly checked under her white-blanketed bed, as the voice had instructed. Indeed, there was a small grey backpack. Nessa was quite surprised.

"Hmm. I thought it'd be bigger…"

After a moment, she unzipped it and reached inside to see if anything was already in it.

Both girls gasped as her upper arm almost disappeared into the bag.

"Oh…my…" Serena breathed.

"So it is bigger…on the inside, at least!"

* * *

"Well, Ah'll be!" said Ava as Iris pulled her arm from the bag. "It's lahke magic!"

"And I thought there was no such thing!" Iris chuckled, looking at her arm.

"Well, that there ball thingeh sure looked magic…" Ava mused. "Wunder how it knew y'had that backpack unda there…"

Iris shrugged. Then Ava's green eyes migrated over to her orange-blanketed bed.

"Maybeh…"

She walked over to it and knelt down. Then she reached underneath and started to feel around.

"Maybeh Ah got somethin' useful unda—aha!"

Her eyes lit up as she pulled out the something useful. Iris raised her left eyebrow.

"A…rope?" Iris asked uncertainly.

"Eeyup!" Ava smiled as she gave it a small tug to see its strength. "This oughta come in handeh. Ah'm realleh good with knots. Heck, Ah could jist—"

"That's nice, but we still gotta get outta here!" Iris blurted out. "We only got ten minutes, remember?"

Ava's eyebrows went up.

"Oh, rahght! Sorreh 'bout that. Now let's git packin'!"

They didn't pack much more than the rope: just Finch's letter, the papers, and a few fritters for the road. The ball of simply followed them on its own.

They were passing through the front door when the kitchen timer, which Ava had set for ten minutes, went off.

"Just in time," Iris muttered as she pulled the door shut.

She and Ava nervously looked ahead at the path leading into the forest. The chilly air and dim light from the overcast sky did not make the first steps any easier to take.

* * *

Lucy looked around at the trees on either side the path lit by the glowing white ball. The light was even worse past said trees.

She then looked at Rosie, who was skipping along in front of her. The darkness and chill didn't seem to bother Rosie.

_How can she stay so cheerful in a place like this? It doesn't make any sense!_ Lucy wondered. _Unless…_

She thought back to when they had been packing inside the house. They had gone back into the bedroom to get the backpack when Rosie had looked into the mirror. After a second, she gasped and ran away from it as if she had seen a monster.

_Then I asked her what she saw. She said that her reflection had changed on her, like another Rosie had appeared in the mirror. A Rosie with straight hair and a crazy grin. But I don't think I'd grin like that if I were late on something…would I?_

After telling Lucy what had happened, Rosie had perked back up in almost an instant. It seemed weird at the time and even now, but now Lucy thought about it…

_Maybe it's just…just how she deals with things, her coping mechanism. Yeah, that's it. I hope._

Lucy had then found the backpack under her bed (just as the voice had said), and Rosie proceeded to give her a little shock with it.

_For a second there, I actually thought she'd lost her arm,_ Lucy thought with a chuckle.

Seeing backpack's true nature, Rosie had decided to pack all sorts of things in it: gag items, party decorations, whipped cream and foil pie plates from the kitchen…

_I'm surprised how light it is, even with all that junk! But why'd she pack all of that? We're not gonna throw a party out here in the woods!_

Suddenly, Rosie stopped with a loud squeak. Lucy almost walked right into her.

"What's the matter?"

A worried-looking Rosie turned around to face Lucy.

"My knee just got pinchy, just like the mirror!" Rosie told her. "Something scary's gonna happen, I just know it!"

"Wha—? W-Why's that?"

"'Cause my knee got pinchy!" For some reason, Rosie sounded completely serious.

Lucy just had to roll her eyes.

"Honestly, Rosie," she grumbled. "You can't predict the future based off body spasms; it just doesn't—"

A nearby rustle made them both jump and look into the woods around the path. It was followed by another noise:

"Grrrrrrr…"

"What was that?" Lucy whispered, her breathing getting faster.

A howl almost made her scream. It also answered her question.

"Wolves!"

Just as Lucy said it, five of said predators leapt out of the woods, right in front of the girls. Both of them screamed, startled by the sudden appearance. Without thinking about it, they started to back up.

Suddenly, one of the wolves charged at the girls. Lucy raised her arms in defense.

"Stay back!" she shouted, thrusting her right hand forward, as if by instinct.

A blast of magenta energy shot out of her hand with a strange zapping noise and hit the wolf. It yelped in surprise as it flew back towards its pack.

Rosie and Lucy stared at the latter's palm, which was glowing with the same energy she had shot.

"Wooow…what's _that_ all about?" Rosie asked in amazement.

"I dunno, but I'd better keep it up!" Lucy answered, pointing her hand towards the wolves. "Let's just hope these are the only ones here!"

She started to brandish her arm at the wolves, causing the one she had zapped to cower. The others backed up, too, but not as much. And they all looked more hungry than scared.

"I don't think so!"

Rosie grinned as she thrust her hand at the wolves, causing the one Lucy hit to flinch. Nothing happened.

She tried again and again, but to no avail.

"Uh-oh…" Her face fell with awful realization.

She looked at the wolves and then at Lucy. Suddenly, she perked up.

"'Scuse me for a second," she said, reaching into the backpack.

After a moment, she pulled several unused party balloons. She picked one out and loudly inhaled.

_What's she planning to do with those? _Lucy wondered as Rosie blew one up.

When she was done, Rosie raised the overinflated balloon and let it go. It flew towards the wolves, startling them. That didn't deter them, however. Rosie blew up another balloon to do it again.

"I don't think that's a good idea, Rosie…" Lucy's voice was shaking again. "They're just getting angrier!"

Indeed the wolves were. Their growls had become snarls, and they were snapping their jaws as if to say, "You're on the menu tonight!"

"Then I got a better idea!" Rosie all but shouted.

She threw down the other balloons and ran behind Lucy once again.

_What's she gonna do? Cream them with pies? That's not much better than—_

Lucy yelped in surprise as Rosie grabbed her right forearm and left hand. Lucy didn't fight it, though.

"Ready…" said Rosie, looking down Lucy's arm.

It felt so familiar; had they done this before, Lucy wondered.

"Aim…"

Rosie adjusted Lucy forearm. Lucy didn't resist.

_I think I remember the drill now!_ _Though I can't remember where—_

Lucy's thought was cut off by a shout.

"FIRE!"

With that, Rosie pulled down on Lucy's left hand, causing Lucy to shoot out a constant stream of rapid-fire magic blasts.

The blasts hit the ground right in front of the wolves, which yelped and cowered away from them.

"It's working! Keep it up, Lucy!"

Lucy felt a drop of sweat trickled down her forehead.

"I don't know if I can—"

A distant scream and zap that sounded like Lucy's magic cut her off. Rosie stopped firing Lucy, and both looked at where it came from. So did the wolves.

After a second, the girls and the wolves looked at each other again. Lucy made her hand glow again. The wolves looked at her for a second and then ran into the forest on the opposite side of the path. As soon as they were out of sight, Rosie let go of Lucy's arms.

"Woo-hoo!" Rosie squealed, jumping for joy. "We did it! We fended 'em off!"

"Yeah, we did," Lucy answered, worriedly. "But whoever screamed over there—"

"Don't worry! They'll be fine!" Rosie giggled.

"Rosie! They just told a bunch of hungry wolves where they are! How can you say—?!"

"I read the outline, and it says everypony's fine! Boy, I'm glad the author didn't have the later parts filled in; I don't like spoilers!"

Lucy could do nothing but gawk at her companion in utter confusion.

_What is WITH this girl?_ she thought in disbelief. _What's this about an author and an outline? We're not in a story!_

_And why'd she say "everypony"? We're humans, not horses!_

For some strange reason, she wasn't absolutely sure about her last thought.

* * *

"I know she almost hit you, but you startled her," Serena said to a spider on the ground.

Nessa stood a little ways away, wide-eyed and shaking. Her right arm was extended towards the burn mark where Serena was kneeling. A light blue glow surrounded her hand

"No, she didn't mean to, either. But we're both a little scared right now."

After a moment, Serena spoke again.

"Thank you," she said with a gentle smile. "On your way now."

She watched as the arachnid scuttled off into the woods. As she stood up, she looked at her frazzled companion.

Nessa slowly put her arm down as her hand stopped glowing and walked to Serena.

"It's okay, Nessa." Serena smiled gently. "She won't scare you like that again."

"Whew!" said Nessa as she wiped her forehead. "Thanks. I don't think I've ever been that scared before!"

"She wasn't really that scary. The vines were worse…"

Serena shuddered at the thought.

"Vines? You mean those low-hanging ones we saw just before…?"

Serena nodded, bringing her head down in fear.

"What was so scary about them?" Nessa asked.

Serena hesitated for a second.

"I-It's…well…I-I don't really know…I just…"

"Yes?"

Serena sighed.

"I just don't like vines touching my ankles…" she admitted, blushing.

Nessa raised an eyebrow, baffled by this strange fear.

"C-Can we s-stop talking about it?" Serena begged her. "Please?"

"Sure thing, darling." Nessa smiled gently. "The last thing we need is to scare ourselves unnecessarily."

Serena and relaxed her shoulders. Nessa looked at her hand and made it glow again.

"This ought to come in handy sometime…" she chuckled.

A howl and several growls from the right side of the path made them jump. Five hungry-looking wolves then jumped out of the forest right in front of them.

"No! Stay back!" Nessa shouted in a panic, holding out her glowing hand.

After a second, one wolf ran into the forest with a panicked yelp. The others backed up, but they weren't deterred. Instead, after a moment, they started to advance again, snapping their jaws.

Nessa's hand stopped glowing, and she fainted. Serena glanced at her with a gasp and then looked back at the wolves, which were all looking at her.

She whimpered for a second, but then a memory stirred. She had seen this before, or something like it.

She stared back at the wolves with a stern look.

"Now what do you think you're doing, picking on a pair of defenseless girls?!"

The wolves stopped in their tracks and fell silent. They looked back at Serena, apparently surprised.

"What would your mothers think if they heard about this? You're just being a pack of big, mean bullies; you scared poor Nessa so much, she fainted!"

They hung their heads in shame. One of them whined.

"Now I want you to go back home and think about what you've done!"

They all whined as they re-entered the forest. One paused and looked at her with a whine. As this happened, Nessa sat up.

"No buts," Serena told it firmly. "You got that?"

It lowered its head and walked into the forest. Nessa slowly picked herself back up, staring at Serena and her stern expression.

"D-Did my ears deceive me," Nessa faltered, "or did you just…?"

She voice faded before she complete the sentence. Serena looked at her as the sternness vanished from her face, replaced by a look of worry.

"Did I go too far?" she asked shakily. "Was I being too—eep!"

Nessa had thrown her arms around Serena, startling the latter.

"Thank you!" Nessa whispered with tears in her eyes. "Thank you so much, Serena! You saved my life…both our lives!"

Slowly, as she recovered from the surprise, Serena returned the embrace. She could feel a tear trickling down her own face.

"You're welcome, Nessa," she whispered back with a soft smile.

After a long moment, they let go of each other and looked back where the wolves had blocked their progress. They looked at each other and nodded as they continued. Serena, however, still looked worried.

_That one wolf…_she wondered. _The one Nessa scared off…_

She shuddered as she thought about it.

_Oh, no, I hope it doesn't find anyone…_

* * *

"Man, this is so BORING!" Iris groused as she took a bite of fritter.

Ava sighed and shook her head.

"I mean, we've been walking this _stupid_ path for who-knows-how-long, and nothing exciting's happened!"

"Careful wha'cha wish fer, pardner," Ava cautioned her. "Y'mahght just git it."

Iris rolled her eyes as she swallowed and adjusted her backpack.

"You had t'say it, didn't you?" she mumbled sarcastically.

Suddenly, a growl came from behind them.

Both girls gasped turned around. A single wolf stood right behind them, baring its teeth in a show of aggression.

"Oh, tarnation…RUN!"

Iris didn't need to be told a second time. She was almost surprised that Ava was keeping pace with her.

It wasn't helping that much, though. They may have been fast, but so was the wolf. In fact, it was gaining on them.

"HERE!" Iris shouted, hurling her half-eaten fritter at it.

She heard the wolf yelp and coming to a halt like the fritter was something dangerous. She laughed victoriously as Ava rounded a sharp bend in the path. Having slowed down to distract the wolf, Iris sped up to catch up. She rounded the corner…

"WHOA, NELLEH!"

Ava's shout came just in time. Iris screeched to a halt right next to her.

At the edge of a long cliff over a wide pit. They could see the slightly lower opposite side, but they also saw the mist below, dark, dank, and unclear.

Iris stiffened and backed away as she started to sweat and hyperventilate.

Suddenly, Ava stiffened as well.

"Mah rope!"

Iris jumped a little at her outburst.

"Ah need mah rope, Ahris!"

Ava ran behind Iris and reached into the backpack for a moment. When she returned to Iris's side, Ava started to spin her lasso over her head.

_What did she see out there…?_ Iris had to wonder.

Then she saw it: a tree branch, halfway across the chasm.

_So she's gonna use her rope to make a…oh, boy…_

Ava hurled the lasso around the branch and pulled it tight.

"Grab on!" she shouted, tugging the rope. "We gotta swing across!"

Iris's fear redoubled.

"Um…I'm not so sure about—"

A snarl from behind them drew her attention. The wolf had shaken off the sweet distraction and come around the corner, ready for the main course.

"Never mind."

Iris stood opposite Ava and grabbed the rope. She looked at the pit and shuddered.

"Y'ready?" Ava all but shouted.

Iris swallowed hard.

"On three! One…"

The wolf crouched, ready to spring forward.

"Two…"

It charged with a loud snarl. Iris gritted her teeth.

"THREE!" Ava shouted.

Iris reluctantly ran forward with Ava and jumped off the cliff. The wolf barely avoided falling into the mist-filled pit.

Iris was pretty sure she had a death grip on the rope. She knew for certain she was screaming her head off.

They swung through the mist, clearing some out of their way as they did. Before they knew it, they were swinging over the other side of the pit. Seeing how close to the ground they were, Iris let go and tumbled to safety, lying on her back. A moment later, Ava landed a little ways in front of her, still holding the rope.

"Whoa…" Iris muttered. "That…was…"

She sat up and raised her fists in the air.

"AWESOME!"

Ava offered Iris her hand, and Iris gladly accepted.

"Let's never do that that again," Iris told her, semiseriously.

Ava chuckled nervously as they looked across the chasm.

There on the other side was their pursuer, probably shouting some unsavory things in wolf, as Ava put it. Suddenly, another wolf appeared as if out of nowhere and approached it, making both girls gasp.

But it was nothing to be afraid of, they realized; this second wolf's attention was trained solely on the first. It growled at the first as if scolding it; it worked, as their pursuer lowered its head with an audible whine. The second one then turned around and snorted before walking away. The first followed it, its tail between its legs.

"Okay…" said a thoroughly confused Iris. "What was that all about?"

"Don' ask me," Ava answered with a shrug.

She looked at back at the rope in her hand and sighed.

"Whadda shame…Ah was hopin' t'save it fer later…"

Her eyes moved to the lassoed branch, as did Iris's.

"That's onna mah knots up there…" she sighed, tugging at the rope. "Ain't gonna come undone in a hurry—"

Just as she said that, the knot came undone. Both girls stared at it as it fell into a pile on their side of the chasm.

"Wha—?" Ava sounded as confused as she did surprised. "Now what in tarnation is THAT all about?"

"Don't ask me!" Iris answered with a shrug.

* * *

"Reference!" Rosie blurted out, screeching to a halt.

"Wha—?"

Lucy stopped and stared at her companion.

"What was that for?"

"I dunno," Rosie responded with a shrug. "Just thought it made sense right there."

She started to skip along again with Lucy walking not too far behind, shaking her head.

Suddenly, Rosie squeaked and came to a halt yet again.

"What is it this time?" Lucy was starting to get annoyed.

"My knee just got pinchy again…" Rosie gulped.

As much as she wanted to shrug it off, Lucy got a bad feeling from that statement.

_Last time that happened, she said some scary would happen, and then that pack of wolves got in our way. What's gonna happen this time…?_

* * *

Though he could not see nor hear them, he knew what was happening.

_So…you give them paths? A valiant move, I'll give you that, but still a foolish one. You're not the only one in control, you know…_

He smiled nastily as he opened his yellow, catlike eyes and licked his dark grey lips with his pitch-black tongue.

…_and their encounters with the wolves have only whetted my appetite._

He lifted his dark grey hoof in front of his face.

SHING!

It unfolded into a five-fingered hand, each finger ending in a talon. It started to glow with a black aura, red around the edges.

_I believe it's time for a little…landscaping._

He lifted it over his head, palm down, and its glow intensified. He gave a shout and hit the ground with this hand. The ground absorbed the glow.

_Yes,_ he thought at the travelers. _Be afraid._

He smiled and licked his lips in anticipation as the ground started to rumble and shake.

_Feed me your fear…_

* * *

A/N: Uh-oh, looks like they're in trouble…what's that guy up to? Find out in the next chapter!

Like it so far? Then please leave a review! It'll encourage me to write more sooner. Following and favoriting also help but not to the same extent.

Finally, here's the first ponycode:

Create: 0O5K000000FE9999FE660000000875C000Z1A35000000000P0 7F5009FF7FFF05107F3FCC004CB2  
Accessorize: 066CC668122312066CC66066CC66066CC6604E8FBAFFFF8C06 6CC66066CC66066CC66066CC66

No, it's not my OC from the last section. Instead, this is a ponified character from an educational show I enjoyed as a child. Mega bonus points to anyone who can figure out who he/she is!

Vivas diu fortunesque. \V/


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